I am neither a republican nor a strong monarchist but, I must admit, I’m quite looking forward to a bit of pomp-and-ceremony tomorrow and a couple of parties later.
On the monarchy, it seems to me that it more than pays for itself in tourist revenue. More importantly, the monarch still has an important constitutional role.
Imagine what would happen if the Queen refused Royal Assent! Your view may differ, but I’m fairly sure the government would fall. Okay, it hasn’t happened here since Queen Anne in 1708, but it has been refused as recently as 1937 in Australia (excluding the denials in 1976 and 2001, which were due to procedural errors).
She has other reserve powers which have been used as recently as 1999, when she refused Queen’s Consent to the Military Action Against Iraq (Parliamentary Approval) Bill.